Knitting machine needle



R. C. AMIDON KNITTING MACHINE NEEDLE Oct. 21, 1947.

Filed Feb. l8,.l946

. El mk INVENTOR, y C. A22/@(10214 u A 6 @9 o W ATTORNEY.

Patented Oct. 2l, 1947 man KNITTING MACmNE NEEDLE Roy C. Amidon, Reading, Pa., assignor to Vanity Fair Mills, Inc., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application February 18, 1946, Serial No. 648,302

8 Claims.

My present invention relates to knitting machine needles of the kind disclosed in my application for patent led August 18, 1944, Serial Number 550,061, and has for its object to provide a needle which can be easily manufactured in fine gages and in which the parts can be easily and quickly assembled without soldering, brazing, welding or pinning the same together.

Other objects will in part be obvious and in part be pointed out hereinafter.

To the attainment of the aforesaid objects and ends, invention further resides in the novel details of construction, combination and arrangement of parts all of which will rst be described in detail and then be specically pointed outin the appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a central vertical section of one embodiment of my invention, parts being broken away.

Fig. 2 is a cross section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrow.

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1 looking in the directi-on opposite that indicated by the arrow.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section on the line li-II of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrow.

Fig. 5 is a vertical section on the line 4-4 ofv Fig. l looking in a direction opposite that indicated by the arrow.

Fig. 6 is a vertical section on the line 6 6 of Fig. 9.

Fig. '7 is an enlarged View of the structure shown in Fig. 6 with the tongue in the hookclosed position shown in dotted lines.

Fig, 8 is a cross section on the line 8-8 of Fig. '7.

Fig. 9 is an elevation of a portion of the structure shown in Fig. 6, on the same scale.

In the accompanying drawing, I indicates the shank of a needle having a, nat edge 2. The needle at its operative or hook end is reduced in cross sectional area as at 3 and bent over as at fi to provide the hook or beard. The hook or beard includes the inwardly curved portion 5, the outwardly curved portion 6 and the point end 7. The general shape of the needle in side elevation somewhat resembles that of the usual spring beard needle. The beard 5, 6, 7, preferably,is relatively rigid, i. e. not so springy as the beard of the common or well known spring-beard needle. Adjacent the bend of the needle there is formed in the beard a longitudinal groove 8 to receive the hook end I2 of the tongue. The tongue comprises the channelled shank I 0 having a flat face 9 to lie against the iiat face 2 of the needle. It also has a bend I I terminating in a hook end I2, the latter being formed to lit into the groove 8 whenthe parts are assembled. The tongue has a slot I3 to receive the point 'I of the needle beard when the thread pass of the needle is closed. In practice the tongue portion I I, I2 is springy but the end I2 iits into slot 8 in a manner to provide a relatively stationary anchorage. As shown in Figs. 1, 6 and 7, the inner surface of the needle bend and the outer surface of the bend of the hook are semi-circular surfaces.

In assembling the needle and tongue the tongue is laid flatwise between the bend 6 of the beard and the shank 3 so both lie in the same general plane. Then the tongue is pushed up in the direction of the dotted arrow, past the bend 5 until the bends II and 4 are brought into contact and the end I2 snaps into groove 3, there being sufficient resiliency in the parts II, I2 and 5 to permit this operation.

It is to be observed that as the space between the in-curved portion 5 of the beard is less than the spread of the hook of the tongue, once the parts are assembled the tongue cannot accidentally be pulled out of the needle, by a pul1 in the direction of the Shanks.

In the first embodimentl the tongue no pivotal movement in the bend II.

In Figures 6 to 9 inclusive is shown another embodiment of my invention in which parts corresponding generally to like parts in the preceding figures bear the same reference numbers plus the index letter a. In this form of the invention the end of the hook I2a extends into a slot 8a the bottom of which and the end of the hook are struck on an arc whose center of curvature is that of the curve of the portion I Ia so that when the tongue Ila is moved from the fu11 line position in Fig. '7 to the dotted line position and vice versa there will be apivotal or hinge action of the .part I Ia in the part la i. e. the tongue will be pivotally held or anchored lin the needle hook without part I I has the use of a pivot pin or rivet; the parts of the needle ofthe second form are assembled in the same manner as those of the first embodiment asY indicated in Fig. 6.

The needle and tongue may be operated in the same way as they are in my application aforesaid and as the means for effecting the relative movements between the tongue 9 (9a) and needle I (la) to close and open the thread passage constitute no part of the present application, a disclosure thereof is unnecessary herein.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings it is thought the construction and advantages of my present invention will be clear to those skilled in the art.

What I claim is:

1. A knitting needle having a shank, and a beard connected by a bend; a tongue having ashank channelled to receive the needle shank and having a hook to lie in said bend, said needle having a groove on the inside of the beard adjacent the bend and the tongue hook having an end lying within said groove, said beard having an incurved portion lying closer to the shanko the needle than the end of the tongue hook for purposes described.

2. A knitting needle having a semi-rigid beard united to a shank by a bend having-a semi-circular inner surface, a tongue having a grooved shank to embrace the needle shank between the same and the beard and having a, bend terminating in ahook and having a semicircular outer surface to contact theA semicircular inner surface of the needle'bend, the hook end of the tongue lying in a groove in the inner suriace of the beard thereby to anchor the parts together.

3. A knitting needle having a semi-rigid beard united to a shank by a bend having a-semi-circular inner surface, a tongue having a'lgrooved shank to embrace the needle shank between the same and the beard and having a bend terminating in a hook and having a semicircular outer surface to contact the semicircular inner surface of the needleV bend, the hook end of the tongue lying rockably in a groove in the inner Ysurface of theY beard thereby to anchor the parts pivotally together. Y

4. A bearded needle having a shank and-a beard with an inwardly curved portion adjacent the bend of the needle-and having a recess adjacent the said bend in combination with a tongue having a hook adapted to be snapped pastl said inwardly cui-'ved portion of the beard and lie in thefbend of the needle with the point `oi the .tongues hook held in said recess by its own resiliency; said tongue having a channeled shank to embrace the shank ofthe needle and prevent lateral displacement Yof the needle and tongue,

5. A knitting machine needle having a shank and a beard joined together by a bend, the beard adjacent the bend being curvedlinwardly toward the shank and then outwardly away from the shank and iinally inwardly toward the shank and terminating in thel point of the beard, said needle on the inner wall ofthe beard adjacent the bend having a longitudinal slot; a tongue having a shank and a hook, the shank of the tongue lying against the shank. ofthe needle `and the hook of the tongue lying inside and `against the bend of the needle with the end of the hook held in said slotithe spread of the hook of the tongue being greater than 'thezdistance between the' rst mentioned inwardly bent portion of the beard and the shank'of the needle, Vby virtue of which the hook of the tongue will be held to the needle by retaining friction, the tongue having side walls to lembrace the shank oflthe needle 'andhaving a beard-point receiving slot.

Bf. Aknitting machine VVneedle having a shank Y and a beard joined" together by a bend, the beard adjacent the bend being curved inwardly toward .greater than the distance between the rst inentioned inwardly bent portion of the beard and the shank of theneedle, by virtue of which the hook oithe tongue will be held to the needle by retaining friction, the tongue having side walls to embrace the shank of the needle and having a beardpoint receiving slot, the curvature of the bend of the needle and that of the tongue hook and that of the beard slot being struck on a common center by virtue of which the tongue is rockably anchored to the needle to turn about an axis containing said cornmon center.

7. A knitting machine needle having a shank and a beard joined together by a bend, the beard adjacent the bend being curved inwardly toward the shank and then outwardly away from the shank and finally inwardly toward the shank and terminating` in the point of the beard,`said needle on the inner wall of the beard adjacent the bend having a longitudinal slot; a tongue having a shank and a hook, the shank of the tongue lying against the shank of the needle and the hook of the tongue lying inside and against the bend of the needle with the end of the hook held in said slot the spread of the hook of the tongue being greater than the distance between the first mentioned inwardly bent portion of the beard and the shank of-the needle, by virtue of which the hook of the tongue will be held to the needle by retaining friction, the tongue having side walls to embracel the shank of the needle and having a beard-point receiving slot, the sidewalls respectively of the hook-part of the tongue and the side walls ofv the needle adjacent thereto being substantially flush with one another.

8. A bearded needle having a shank and a beard with an inwardly curved portion adjacent the bend of the needle and having a recess adjacent the said bend in combination with al tongue having a hook adapted to be snapped past said inwardly curved portion of the beard and lie in the bend of the needle with the point of the tongues hook held in said recess by its own resiliency; said tongue having a channeled shank tolernbrace the shank of the needle and prevent lateral displacement of the needle and tongue, the sidewalls respectively of the hook-part of the tongue and the side walls of the needle adjacent thereto being substantially flush with one another.

f ROY C. AMIDON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references areof record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

